I know
by Stuff3
Summary: When "I love you" becomes too hard to say, there's only one real substitution.


She did not just get out of a coma to instantly deal with **his** bullshit again. Luckily it didn't seem like she'd have to, at least not in the way she expected.

It was certainly something to see the Takayanagi towers collapse. Especially under the might of such immense power. Even more so were all the people bowing at her sudden reappearance.. or maybe that was just because she was naked.

Not that she could blame them. She could take either answer.

But that was during the fight which was over, for now at least, though the effects were far reaching. Police and ambulances rushed in, streets were shut down, and crowds of people were being rushed to the hospital. Fortunately for her, all of her own were accounted for. Well except one.

That brat ran off to who knows where and Aya wouldn't stop blabbering until everyone knew about it. As if they weren't there to see it themselves. But just as she was focused on one particular person, so was her older sister.

Maya's head was on a swivel; preoccupied with looking for someone, though the debris and all the other people certainly complicated matters. Even with the clamor and clatter she stood casually among it all, even more so casually holding only a white tarp to cover her body. It left very little to the imagination, if they hadn't seen already. A stray breeze would often blow some of it off letting some lucky bystanders a peak at her.

When just standing there didn't produce the desired result she poked her head over the crowds of people swarming around her to get a better look. She was sure he was still out there. He'd been through worse. Then again this was unlike anything either of them had been through yet, so maybe he's...

With her eyes peaking over the horde of people she could see bright flashes of light in the distance. She could hear the sirens going off continuously. That mixed with the cries of agony were to be expected she supposed. The moon illuminated their night in white.

Then she saw something. There was an ambulance; one of many, but this one she took a particular interest in. Another person was being taken away in a stretcher and it blocked her view of it. She lowered her head and then popped it up and over the crowd again for a second look. She didn't need the Dragon's Eyes to see that's where she wanted to go.

She took a step forward with the tarp clinging closely all around her body. She began maneuvering her way through the crowd, but found it difficult when everyone was heading in the every direction except the one she wanted to go. She slipped through the masses under the cover of moonlight. Her 'antennas' bobbing up and down in sync with her large breasts as she made her way towards the ambulance. She held the tarp close to her, almost tripping on it a few times and even almost having it ripped from her body with all the commotion. No matter what she did, she never took her eyes off that one ambulance.

The closer she got to him the clearer the picture was and it wasn't something pleasant. Then again what was?

He was laying in a stretcher, his shirt still off showing his heavily muscled body. Bandages were wrapped around his abdomen, as well as up and over the left side of his chest. It managed to conceal most of his scars.

"The ambulance is ready. We have to get you out of here, right now" he was being told. More like scolded. Like the stupid little kid he is.

"No" he put his arm up and groaned "Not yet". It seemed that he had the same idea she did because right as he said that he looked away from the people helping him to look at the crowd.

His eyes locked with hers instantly.

She froze at first, but she soon found the courage to walk forward. She didn't come all this way for nothing. He moved to get up and was advised against it, but did so anyway. He put his arms up and lifted himself out of the stretcher. He planted his feet firmly on the ground to stand up tall and walked over to her, then each stood before the other. That physical display lessened her fears a bit. Maybe things weren't so bad after all.

Neither of them said anything at first. Maya's mouth moved to say something, but no words came out. A small breeze circled them. The tarp she was encased in flapped and it was the only thing to be heard. That was until they both found words.

"Mitsuomi" "Maya" they blurted each other's names in sync.

That was all either of them could come up with. He was probably still in disbelief that she was really back. So was she.

"You don't seem like your in pain" she smiled finally finding her voice. She was hoping he wasn't. Of course he had to be in some kind of agony, he was about to be taken away to the hospital; no different than anyone else here. Some of them- maybe most would be corpses before morning. She hoped she wasn't in the way. She just couldn't stand to see him like this. She never liked to see him in pain. Not even now.

"Pain? What pain?" he questioned "I've had worse pain than this" he suddenly winced and grabbed his side, the bandages noticeably becoming red "Can't think of any right now but..." he let out a breath to end his failed bravado and his eyes fell on her.

"What?" she questioned.

"Your not cold in that?" he asked, probably in some sick attempt at humor. Normally she'd have some witty retort, but she didn't seem to be herself today. She turned her gaze away from his to look elsewhere.

"Fuck you" she spat in a sudden spurge defiance. More like 'Fuck me'. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a look of shock on his face at her rebuttal. It tore her up inside the way he looked at her right now. "Sorry" she apologized in half a sigh and half a laugh "It's been a long day" she admitted, her voice much lighter than before. He managed to nod in agreement.

She didn't know what else to say, she usually always had something to say. She expected he might have something to say. She knew him well enough to know he had to. He definitely looked like it at least . It just so happened as she was wondering all that he opened his mouth.

"Maya-" he regained her full attention as she snapped her face to view his.

"Yes" she gaped with bright, wide eyes in anticipation. She keyed in on the tone of his voice. There was a surprising amount of humility in it. That and longing "I'm-I-uh.. I" he stammered and she continued to stare on at him hopelessly. There was so much he wanted to say and so much she wanted to hear.

"Yes" she said again, dragging on the word this time as she leaned up towards him.

Continuing to try and put his words together he brought his left arm up and slowly reached his hand towards her face. But his hand flinched and suddenly stopped mere inches before it could touch her and instead of reaching out, recoiled to his side.

"I'm glad your back" he eventually said, his voice now devoid of emotion or feeling. She felt her heart drop when he said that. That certainly wasn't what she expected.. or hoped. He was holding back from her.

She bowed her head "Your such a tease" she muttered to the ground.

"Hm?" he let out sharply, fixated on her. He must have heard her say something.

"Nothing." she shook her head, her voice still barely audible "Nothing at all". Her vision started to become blurry. The only thing she could see on the ground was his shadow in the moonlight.

She closed her eyes as tears started slowly slipping out of them. No matter how hard she tried to be strong and not cry, they came out regardless. In the darkness she could feel that something reached out to gently touch her cheek and lifted her face up. When she opened her eyes even with the tears clouding her vision she could see him clear as day and feel the warmth of his hand on her cheek.

He hated seeing her cry and she knew that. Even after all these years that's what he couldn't stand. He made a promise to her all those years ago. But he broke that one just as he broke one to her tonight, strangely she didn't care about that right now. With his hand tenderly pressed against her cheek he wiped whatever tears she couldn't hold back away with his thumb.

She kept one arm draped across her chest to hold the cloth over her body. But some of it slid down revealing all of her backside when raised her right arm to put a hand onto the left side of his chest. She didn't care who saw her now. She was touching bandages, but she knew what was underneath it, though it seemed to be far from his biggest problem right now. The scar. The one her brother had engraved into his skin.

And then there's what he did to her brother in return.

Mitsuomi ran his hand around her head letting her hair flow through his palm before dropping off the edges of his fingers. He looked over her shoulder to see Bunshichi being taken away, a freshly lit cigarette in his mouth. He felt like he could go for one right now. He saw Maya turn her head to see their mutual friend being taken away. If he could still be friends with both of them, what could they be?

He didn't bother moving her head away or blocking her view of what he did. He wanted to protect her, but not shield her from the ugliness in the world. After taking in enough of it her wet eyes went back to him.

"Sir we have to get you out of here" the doctor came back again with more urgency in his voice than before. It was hard to imagine how slow everything seemed to be moving.

Mitsuomi turned his to the doctor "In a minute" he responded calmly to him before turning back to her.

Neither one of them had moved from their place. They stood together their shadows growing in the moonlight. Each one getting closer and closer to the edge of the light and towards the rest of night. It would eventually reach it covering the world in the darkness that was coming for them anyway.

Sirens, the roar of the crowds, cries of pain, gods, demons, all the destruction and yet the most captivating thing was also the hardest thing to take in; the look in each other's eyes.

His hand returned to her cheek and her head lay peacefully in his palm. He wiped away a few more stray tears from her cheeks before her eyes opened to see his again.

"Come with me" he pleaded. His face didn't show it, but his voice as well as his eyes betrayed him. Emotion had returned to his voice. There was a pain and yearning in his it, both were all to familiar to her. The one thing she couldn't find was regret; the one thing she wanted from him.

Well that and something else.

She felt so empty and hollow. So lonely. Tears began building in her eyes again.

She shook her head slowly and his hand fell from her face "Not yet"

He remained where he was, his eyes on her, taking in her every word. "When?" A simple question. The answer not as much.

She took a deep breathe and released it before answering "I don't know". That answer would have to do for now.

Maybe when this was all over. But with his condition, how long would that be?

The doctor returned again to put a hand on Mitsuomi's shoulder "Time to go" he said. It didn't seem like any arguing would stop him this time. Turning his back on her he took a step forward and limped away to fall back into his stretcher, yet there was pain in every step that took him there. The fact that he was more hurt than he looked and she couldn't even realize it made her even more distraught. Her lips began to tremble and soon enough her whole body was too. They were taking him away from her.

She couldn't wait anymore. She had to tell him.

"Mistuomi" she whispered his name, like she did so many nights to the picture in her room before falling asleep. He didn't hear her. Nobody heard her. She barely heard herself. She would have to be louder. She took in a deep breath and opened her mouth to scream at the top of her lungs. "Mitsuomi!" she cried out for him. They stopped moving him before he got into the ambulance and Mitsuomi perked up to look back to her. "Mitsuomi.. I-" she choked, the tears pouring out of her eyes. She thought she had long run out of them. " I-I-"

"I know." he cut her off not allowing her to say the words. He knew just as well as her it was too hard to say. Too hard to put everything they've been through into three simple words, even though it was the only thing either one ever wanted to hear from the other. "...and Maya" he spoke up, taking a brief pause after saying her name "I-"

"I know too" she smiled, finishing for him. Not letting him get the better of her now or ever. Not letting him to be the first one to say 'I love you'.


End file.
